Can I add chem nutes to compost tea?

[Young Yoda]

Oh i plan on improving the tea that's what I meant. I have to kind of accrue these ingredients over time, but I will probably start adding from VI's recipe.
I may have a bag of alfalfa.. The pellet kind though. If I just crush it up, is it just as good as alfalfa meal?

About the compost bins, do you cover them emy? Since you say they get air from the top, I'm wondering if you mean when mixing, or all the time? I'm thinking about using 30gal plastic tote bin, but I don't want to leave it open.

 

[Emilya Green]

Oh i plan on improving the tea that's what I meant. I have to kind of accrue these ingredients over time, but I will probably start adding from VI's recipe.
I may have a bag of alfalfa.. The pellet kind though. If I just crush it up, is it just as good as alfalfa meal?

About the compost bins, do you cover them emy? Since you say they get air from the top, I'm wondering if you mean when mixing, or all the time? I'm thinking about using 30gal plastic tote bin, but I don't want to leave it open.

The tote should work just fine. No, I do not have air holes in my compost bin, and I keep the lid on it to keep it from smelling, and it can smell quite earthy at times, especially when you throw a couple of root balls in there and it all starts breaking down. The only air it gets is the gap from soil level to the top of the lid, and from me getting in there once a week to mix it all up. Also, totes might be easier to mix up than these 20gal bins, not to mention I think they are 27gal containers.

Not sure about the pellets, some of this stuff is actually so strong that it must be cooked into the soil for a couple of months before use, so I bet they make some powerful teas too. Kelp meal is a good example... strong stuff, and can easily burn plants if used in strong concentrations or just added to soil without composting. The ingredients needed for these teas can surprise you though, one of the best teas I made recently and that really jump started my plants in veg, was a tea made with oatmeal. (Thanks SweetSue). It amazes me how easily we can make effective teas for organic gardens... one very good tea that I now make often is made by simply throwing a handful of compost in the bubbler with my distilled water. Bubble for 2 days and even dirt becomes a beneficial tea! I will never buy synthetic nutes again.

 

[Papageno]

I use oatmeal too.




Pellets should break down fine in the tea your probably don't need to crush them. There should be plenty of surface area to get what you want. Give it a shot.

 

[Young Yoda]

Thanks guys, I'm gonna try composting this year.

But, since I have you tea experts here, my tea making is taking a turn for the worse and I'm hoping for some advice. After my first successful brew I thought I knew the basics, but I haven't been able to recreate it once..

So here's what I do: 1 gal drinking water in a 5 gal homer bucket, in goes the pair of airstones from my 48gph air pump (i know, i know). I grab a handful of ewc in my old sock and hang it in the bucket. Then I add 1/2 tsp of the recharge. I add a bit of molasses, maybe 1/2 tsp. Then stir.
Right after I add the recharge, I usually start to see foam.

The first time I did it, I added a drop of fish emulsion.. The tea brewed for 24 hours, had a good bit a foam on the top, ph 7, and I used it.
The next time, I didn't add any fish emulsion. The foaming started up like normal, but 24 hours later there was no foam and the ph was 8.
I decided against using that tea.
Today, I left the airstones in the water for around 30 minutes before I added anything. I added the recharge first, and absolutely nothing happened.. Added a little molasses, still nothing. Now I'm really confused. What the heck is going on?

 

[Emilya Green]

not even close to enough air. My pump puts out 768 gph. It is recommended to have at least 500 gph to make AACT. Even with my big pump, I don't get foaming either, until the microbes start growing around the 24 hour mark

 

[Young Yoda]

not even close to enough air. My pump puts out 768 gph. It is recommended to have at least 500 gph to make AACT. Even with my big pump, I don't get foaming either, until the microbes start growing around the 24 hour mark

Okay well I coughed up and ordered an upgrade. I'll try again when it arrives.

However, I swear I saw a lot of foam form very quickly upon addition of the recharge. And I don't mean bubbles on the top of the water, I mean enough foam so that I couldn't see the water anymore. I'll be checking this out again in a week or so.

 

[Emilya Green]

a nice foam will form that has some black and brown in it... that is the microbes, clinging to things.